Apple’s Latest Ad Is Probably Going to Give You Chills

Apple debuted a new 90-second ad for the iPad Air on Sunday. Much like previous iPad advertisements, the spot positions the tablet as a do-anything device that goes far beyond simply checking email and browsing the Internet. The new commercial, with its sweeping vistas, makes the case for the many ways in which iPads might help people create, from making movies to (presumably) calibrating wind turbines. Apple has a website detailing some of the feats shown in the spot.

More surprising is actor Robin Williams’ narration, which seems to come entirely from a scene in the film Dead Poets Society. The narration is:

We don’t read and write poetry because it’s cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering – these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love – these are what we stay alive for.

To quote from Whitman,

“O me, O life of the questions of these recurring. Of the endless trains of the faithless. Of cities filled with the foolish. What good amid these, O me, O life? Answer: that you are here. That life exists and identity. That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse.”